Powerhouse Strategies for Powerhouse Classrooms! Presented by Michelle Falzon – Catholic Regional College North Keilor Saturday 18th November 2017 Test notes www.PESA.edu.au © PESA 2017

www.PESA.edu.au © PESA 2017

Approx. 6% of our daily living processes come from the CONSCIOUS mind. People have approximately 60,000 thoughts per day.. 95% of those thoughts are from the day before. Approx. 94% of our active daily processes come from our SUB-CONSCIOUS mind. Approx. 6% of our daily living processes come from the CONSCIOUS mind. Birth to 3 – Time of rapid intellectual, emotional & physical growth of the brain. By age 6 – 95% of the brain development is complete. Preteens (10 – 12 yrs) – 2nd major brain growth spurt. Adolescences (13 – 20yrs) – Pruning & organising, especially in the frontal lobe. www.PESA.edu.au © PESA 2017

THE IMPORTANCE OF SETTING GOALS Self – Concordant Goals: Goals we pursue out of deep personal conviction and/or a strong interest. (Long-term & Short-term = ACTION PLAN) Want-to vs Have-to: How much of my day is spent on activities that I WANT to do versus those that I HAVE to do? One way of becoming happier and increasing the base level of our wellbeing, is to reduce the HAVE-TO’S while increasing the WANT-TO’S in terms of general life pursuit and daily activities THE MOST SUCESSFUL PEOPLE ARE LIFE LONG LEARNERS – CONSTANTLY ASKING QUESTIONS AND EXPLORING THE WORLD AROUND THEM WITH CURIOSITY How do these apply to both teacher & student? What impact does teaching & learning these goals have on both teacher & student? How can these be taught & learnt through mindfulness based practices? www.PESA.edu.au © PESA 2017

CONNECTIONS @ CRC Structural Implementation: Different from 7-10 based on developmental stages. Purpose: To target social & emotional learning of students. Creating rituals: Through continual practice, good habits are formed. E.g: ‘Tuning – In’ and Expressing Gratitude. Use of language: Continual repetition of language to scaffold & enhance understanding and knowledge of content. Happy people are energetic people. Laughter and humour improve outcomes. Studies have been done and science now proves it. People who are happy tend to be healthier, more resilient and more productive than people who are not. And laughter and humour improve communication, engagement, learning, mental health and wellbeing. The potential for happiness may be all around us, but if it goes unnoticed – if our focus is elsewhere and we fail to perceive it – we risk losing it. To turn a possibility into a reality, we first need to realise that the possibility exists! www.PESA.edu.au © PESA 2017

PRACTICES IN MOTION ‘Tuning-In’ Happiness Map It’s all in the Gratitude! Research by the likes of Herbert Benson and Jon Kabat-Zinn reveal the profound effects of regular meditation/mindfulness. Changes in neural pathways & brain activity can enhance ones knowledge & understanding of relaxation, resulting in more positive practices towards stress & anxiety. Life can be hectic! Creating a Happiness Map can allow people the opportunity to visually reflect upon their life. What gives me meaning? (What provides me with a sense of purpose?) What do I enjoy doing? (What are my strengths?) Research states that those who keep a daily gratitude journal, & write down at least five things for which they were grateful for, enjoyed higher levels of emotional & physical well-being. www.PESA.edu.au © PESA 2017

INITIATIVES IN MOTION Catholic Regional College www.PESA.edu.au © PESA 2017

John Lennon – The Beatles TWO BIG QUESTIONS.. What can parents & teachers do to help students experience pleasure in school & at the same time perform well? 2. How can achievement & the love of learning be reconciled? Pursuit of Happiness The love of learning is hard-wired. Young people are always asking questions and eager to find out more about the world around them. Educators who support their students in the pursuits of the things that are important to them and who help their students attain flow experiences, cultivate this innate love of learning. This in turn can turn learning into a mesmerizingly beautiful adventure. “When I went to school, they asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up. I wrote down ‘happy.’ They told me I didn’t understood the assignment, and I told them they didn’t understand life.” John Lennon – The Beatles www.PESA.edu.au © PESA 2017

5 Ingredients for happy students A good support system and supporting others Having and giving support is one of the most important things we can do. Support networks help us rationalise issues, talk through problems and find solutions. Helping others also gives us a sense of purpose and increases problem solving and social skills. 2. Coping skills Techniques to help us cope with life’s challenges help us be more resilient, happier and determined. Having a good sense of humour is key and helps us to see life in a different way and make mistakes valuable to growing and learning. 3. Achievement and success Learning is a challenge that delivers rewards in education and throughout life. Learning increases our understanding of many different things and gives us confidence in many ways. Understanding how to self-manage our learning and set goals for achievement and success helps us take control and understand our own ability to continually learn and develop.  4. Confidence Confidence is a key skill. It helps us face challenges and cope with events. Confidence is also a behaviour and a thought process. Acting confidently makes you feel confident and makes others perceive you as confident.  5. Positive relationships In surveys having good friends regularly comes out as the most important aspect of having a happy life. You don’t have to be best friends with someone to have a positive relationship. It’s about being consistent and knowing how to build sustain and manage relationships and your role and responsibility it doing so. www.PESA.edu.au © PESA 2017

“Educators – Parents – Teachers who care about helping children lead happy lives must first themselves believe that happiness is the ultimate currency.” ‘Happier’ - Tal Ben-Shahar www.PESA.edu.au © PESA 2017